Al Green
Forrest City, Arkansas singer whose silky tenor and spiritually charged delivery made him the most seductive voice in 1970s soul — then he left it all behind to become a reverend.
Pantheon Standing
| List Name | Rank | Combined |
|---|---|---|
| Greatest R&B / Soul Artists of All Time | #1 | 96.0 |
The Age Divide
Voters under 30 and over 35 rank Al Green significantly differently across lists.
The Cultural Record
Discography
Forrest City, Arkansas singer whose silky tenor and spiritually charged delivery made him the most seductive voice in 1970s soul — then he left it all behind to become a reverend
Awards & Recognition
12 Grammy Awards
View All 12 Grammy Wins →—
The Case For Al Green
“The longevity argument alone puts them in a category of one. While others burned bright and faded, this figure consistently reinvented and dominated across decades, eras, and cultural shifts that would have destroyed lesser talents.”
“Technically unmatched. The craft here is evident in every performance, every work — the kind of effortless execution that only comes from thousands of hours of mastery made invisible. They make the impossible look inevitable.”
“Commercial success should never be held against artistic legacy. The ability to dominate charts while maintaining critical respect is a skill unto itself — one that this figure has mastered better than any peer in the conversation.”
Rank History
Ranking history will be available once voting opens for Al Green.
Often Compared To
Alicia Keys
#2R&B / Soul — Manhattan, New York · 1996–present
New York singer-songwriter-pianist who debuted at 20 with Songs in A Minor and became one of the most commercially successful and critically acclaimed artists of the 2000s.
Anderson .Paak
#3R&B / Soul — Oxnard, California · 2005–present
Oxnard, California singer-producer-drummer whose genre-jumping approach blends hip-hop, soul, and jazz — and whose work as half of Silk Sonic with Bruno Mars created one of the most joyful music projects of the 2020s.